The Colorado Secretary of State is currently investigating the Mesa County Clerk and Recorder for appearing to facilitate a significant breach in election security by allowing an unauthorized individual to participate in a software update of its voting system. Part of the investigation includes a concern that passwords associated with its system, which were only authorized for use by State and Mesa County officials, were posted on a conspiracy website. Because of the break in secure chain of custody, last week the Secretary of State’s office decertified Mesa County’s voting system. Because the equipment is decertified and unusable, Mesa County Elections will have to purchase new voting equipment to establish secure chain of custody or conduct a hand count for the 2021 Coordinated Election.

We want to assure Boulder County voters that this in no way impacts the integrity of our county’s voting system or last year's election results nor should it be a reflection on any other Colorado county clerk's office.

This appears to be an isolated act by an individual Clerk acting outside the boundaries of Colorado election law and should not stain or cast a shadow on the state's gold-star election system nor disparage the hard-working individuals who work tirelessly in elections offices across the state every year to provide accurate, secure elections results.

Boulder County Elections fully supports the Secretary of State’s investigation and has zero tolerance for threats to election security.

For more information on the Colorado Election model and what Boulder County is doing specifically to protect your vote, please see our Election Security Community Briefing: www.BoCo.org/ElectionSecurityReport.

Molly Fitzpatrick
Boulder County Clerk & Recorder